Remembering Randall's Grocery Stores

 

If you grew up in Iowa anytime from the 1960s into the 1990s, you probably remember Randall’s.

Once a week, the entire family packed into the station wagon and headed to the grocery store. Mom followed the sales. Dad studied the steaks. But us kids. We made a beeline for the cereal aisle—Captain Crunch. Sugar Smacks. Applejacks. Count Chocula.

And if you were lucky, you got a nickel to ride the rocket or the race car in the lobby. Or maybe a few cents to blow in the candy aisle.

That was the kid’s perspective.

Randall’s wasn’t the biggest grocer in Iowa. It didn’t need to be. It carved out a solid spot, mostly in eastern Iowa, and did a good business by giving people what they wanted at a fair price.

Randall’s got  its start in 1960, when it bought Smitty’s Grocery in Coralville. Another early location opened in Dubuque in 1963 at Plaza 20 on Dodge Street under the name Randall’s Foodarama.

From there it spread into Cedar Rapids, Davenport, Waverly, Coralville, Clinton, and Dubuque. At its peak, Randall’s had somewhere between 10 and 20 Iowa stores. Not too many.

That was part of the appeal.

Randall’s wasn’t polished and corporate. It was fluorescent lights, tile floors, humming freezer cases, carts with one wheel that wanted to head left, and sale signs taped wherever they fit. The stores smelled like bakery bread, produce, coffee, and the deli counter.

You knew where everything was. Bread over there. Milk in back, so you were forced to walk past everything else. Pop stacked high near the aisle. Seasonal junk up front. Same setup every week.

People remember Randall’s for prices. Families watched every dollar. Newspaper ads got studied. Coupons got clipped and stuffed into purses. If coffee dropped fifty cents, it went on the list.

Randall’s built a reputation as a place where regular people could stretch a paycheck. Real shopping. Hamburger, potatoes, canned soup, bread, lunch meat, detergent, and enough snacks to get the kids through the week.

People also remember the workers.

Back then grocery stores had personalities. The cashier might know your grandma. The guy stocking the produce knew everybody’s business. The meat counter guy could tell you what was worth buying and what wasn’t. Somebody bagged your groceries and loaded them in your car.

And grocery stores used to be social centers. You’d run into teachers, neighbors, church people, old coworkers, and someone your dad hadn’t seen since high school. A quick stop for milk could turn into thirty minutes because someone started talking near canned peas and nobody knew how to leave.

Kids suffered through it. You sat in the cart. Asked for candy and got told no.

That was the full experience. Then the business changed.

By the late 1980s and early 1990s, grocery chains like Randall’s got squeezed hard. Walmart Supercenters changed habits overnight. Suddenly you could buy milk, socks, a fishing lure, windshield wipers, and a toaster in one trip.

That was tough to beat.

Hy-Vee kept growing—bigger, cleaner, and more modern. Stores got pharmacies, floral departments, bakeries, better produce, and prepared foods. Fareway added full service meat counters. Aldi came in with no frills. Just low prices if you were willing to bag your own groceries and put up a quarter to ensure you returned the cart..

Randall’s got stuck in the middle. Too small to cut prices, and too old-school to reinvent itself overnight.

That story played out all over the Midwest. Randall’s faded out store by store. One location closed. Another got sold. Another reopened under a different name. Some old Randall’s buildings became other grocery stores. Some became offices. Some got bulldozed and turned into strip malls.

Today the old Randall’s chain is gone. The name survives in a few separate local businesses, but it’s not the same company.

If you’ve ever said, “I remember that place”… this blog is for you.

I dig up the stories, the lost stores, the old Iowa you don’t see anymore. No clickbait. No junk. Just real nostalgia.

 

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